


Paint Me

by daehyunsleggings



Category: B.A.P
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Vampires, but not the way you'd expect vampires, ohhhhhhhhhh no these are some MIGHTY DIFFERENT VAMPIRES
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-19
Updated: 2016-11-22
Packaged: 2018-08-31 19:30:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8590780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daehyunsleggings/pseuds/daehyunsleggings
Summary: Daehyun's trying his best to hide his teeth, because his canines go up absurdly far into his gums. He's trying to hide his hands, not because he dislikes his hands, but because he loves wearing sweaters that are many sizes too big. He's trying to hide that he's a vampire by acting like a vampire fanatic - and it's working. Well... It was.





	1. Chapter 1

Daehyun stood in front of the bathroom mirror, looking at his reflection in the spot he’d rubbed out of the fog. Light reflected off of his shiny, wet hair, which he had recently dyed black. The red had drawn too much attention. He loved attention, but it was a bit dangerous for him to receive much of it.

He opened his mouth and popped his fangs out, looking at them. They curled around his lips when he closed his mouth. They were long and shiny white, and a bit dulled from misuse. Daehyun smiled at this. He’d promised not to ever bite anything living.

He hissed at his own fangs playfully. Sure, he was a vampire, but he had fun with it. He did Dracula impressions in the mirror regularly, and every Halloween he volunteered at parties with young kids as a magician. He liked wearing a cape. Rabbits in hats were just his warm-up trick. Every party session would end with him drawing his cape across his body and then turning into a bat. He’d soar off before adults could get suspicious, listening to the kids’ startled cheers as he zoomed away.

He slid a sweater over his head. It was gray on the outside, but the sleeves were pink on the inside, and the sleeves were long enough that only his fingers peeked out from the bottom. Pink embroidery on the front spelled out, “Vampires are real.” Daehyun thought it was funny if he wore vampire stuff, considering he was one. No one believed in them, so he could get away with it. Most people thought it was fan merchandise for TV shows.

His cheeks were twice as puffy as they usually were with his fangs out. He poked his cheeks gently, trying to be cute to himself. A moment later he snarled at the mirror, retracting his fangs. They slid back into his gums quickly. His fangs were the reason his canines went up unusually far.

He grabbed his face mask and slid it over his ears, covering his mouth with it. It was a safety measure. Just in case they popped out when he was distracted, they’d be covered. He stepped out of the bathroom and grabbed his backpack, slinging it over his shoulders. Notebooks shifted around gently. A moment later he was stepping out of the door, slipping an earbud in and listening to music.

The school year had started about a month and a half ago. It was mid-October, and the leaves on the trees were the colors of autumn. Gold, orange, blood orange… No, they were red. Daehyun wasn’t pretentious like that.

Red. Daehyun cursed under his breath and turned around, dashing back into his apartment. He’d forgotten his lunch box. He was really glad he liked spicy food, since a lot of it was red. He needed to eat, and in order to satiate his thirst for blood, he needed red. The only reason blood was appealing to him was because it was red. Contrary to popular belief, vampires didn’t need blood. They needed red. Daehyun was just clever enough to combine the two in order to eat his meals to stay alive and drink his red to stay healthy. He’d drink the red out and then eat the food. A lot of vampires were angry that they’d been turned, so they took it out on people or animals and drank blood, but Daehyun could never do that. He could never hurt someone like that. All he had in his heart was love.

And gummies. Little red ones. Sometimes he stuck them to the bottom of his fangs. He had a bad habit of playing with his food. Could you blame him, though? His fangs popped out when he ate regardless of whether he wanted them to or not. It was probably because of how widely he opened his mouth, because they popped out sometimes when he laughed hard, too.

He grabbed his lunch box from the kitchen table and bolted out the door again, dashing to the bus stop.

“Hey, Jongup,” Daehyun said as he skidded to a halt and sat on the bench beside him. The two didn’t know each other well, certainly not well enough to call each other friends, but they interacted. Jongup was always drawing when he wasn’t painting, including at the bus stop.

Jongup mumbled out a greeting, focusing intently on his sketch. It was a landscape of trees at night. He always drew landscapes in the morning. He always let Daehyun watch.

The bus rolled up a few moments later, right as Jongup had sketched a few bats in the sky. Daehyun smiled faintly at it, but it was invisible under his mask.

“Halloween spirit,” Jongup said as he tucked his sketchbook into his backpack. He gestured at Daehyun’s shirt. “You’re gonna be a vampire for Halloween, then, aren’t you?”

“I usually go as a magician,” Daehyun said. “But Dracula could be interesting.”

Jongup rolled his eyes. “We’re adults.” They climbed onto the bus and sat down together. A moment later, it took off. “You can’t still be dressing up for Halloween.”

“I volunteer as entertainment at parties. Little kids love it.”

Jongup saw the way Daehyun’s eyes crinkled with a smile. “That’s sweet.”

They sat together quietly for most of the rest of the ride. Near the end, though, Daehyun spoke up again. “Are you doing anything tonight?”

Jongup furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, then lifted one skeptically. Daehyun elaborated before he could respond.

“I was just going to ask you if, um… You draw and paint a lot, and it’d be cool if I could see some of your stuff.”

Jongup’s eyebrows fell into place in understanding. “Not tonight,” he said. “Sorry. I’m finishing a few up tonight. This weekend, though?”

“Yeah! Sure!” He looked awkwardly at Jongup’s phone in front of him, taking it slowly. He put his phone number in.

“Great.” Jongup smiled at him, taking his phone back. “This is our stop.” They got off the bus and headed towards the campus, going off to their classes.

Daehyun took notes when he thought it would be useful and wrote down the homework. It was mainly textbook reading and practice stuff. He wouldn’t do it that night, but some other time, maybe. After class he headed to the cafeteria and quickly ate his red lunch, checking the time frequently. He caught the bus and took it to a bus stop downtown, walking the last bit of the way to the coffee shop for his shift.

He liked the coffee shop. He used illness as an excuse to keep his mask on, whether it was him or a customer that was sick. Some of the other employees had taken to wearing masks, too. The shop had tons of desserts, and apparently red was a popular choice in food coloring. The crowd was usually university students or young adults, and he served them all with a smile. Behind his mask, of course. He couldn’t chance his fangs popping out.

After his shift ended, he grabbed his backpack and empty lunch box and caught another bus to take home. He got off at the wrong stop and ended up passing some studio buildings that groups of art students rented out and shared. He shrugged, figuring he’d just walk from there, as it wasn’t too far.

A familiar voice rang out of a window in one of the buildings. It was like they were singing to themself without realizing it, or doing it while they were distracted by something else. Daehyun tilted his head, trying to listen, and ran through a list of people whose voices he’d recognize. It wasn’t anyone in his family, or anyone from back home, and they lived in an art student studio, so…

Daehyun walked up to the front of the building and looked at it for a minute, then moved around the corner. He set his backpack and lunchbox down quietly. The tiny noise of him transforming into a bat was heavily drowned out by the voice.

He fluttered around the house, looking for a window that was open. The ones on the ground floor were all shut, but a quick glance in told Daehyun that Jongup wouldn’t be on this floor. There were sculptors but he didn’t see any paint. He saw holes in the ground next to the building and flew down. There were open windows in the wall leading down to a basement. He tilted his head at them curiously, flying to check the bunch of them, and landed on the sill of an open one. His feet pattered as he shifted around to look.

Yup. There was Jongup. He had an earbud in and was painting a landscape on a canvas. His voice flowed through the room gently as he sang along to his music. He seemed to be singing beautifully with minimal effort. Daehyun was pleasantly surprised. He closed his eyes for a moment to listen, then reopened them to watch him paint. Jongup had shifted so that he was blocking the canvas now, though, so Daehyun tried to move around on the windowsill. He moved his small feet along carelessly, not wanting to take his eyes off of the painting. Just a few more steps and he’d be able to see-

He hit the side of the wall without realizing it was there. He shook his head, dazed, but that caused him to lose his balance. He tried to catch himself on the ledge but barely managed a grip with his little claws. A tiny squealing noise escaped his mouth as he fell off, right into a can of paint. His body hitting the metal bottom made a small thunk.

Jongup pulled his earbud out and turned towards the source of the noise. He set his brushes down and walked toward the corner. A quiet scraping was coming from a can of red paint. A bat peeked out of the lid, shaking its head frantically, then fell back into the can. Jongup went to kneel down and pull it out of the can of paint.

Daehyun, on the other hand, was panicking. He couldn’t breathe in the paint, and he had no idea which way was up, and he couldn’t open his eyes, either. He clawed at the can, choking, and, in his panic, transformed with a quiet noise.

He flinched instinctively upon changing, and then again when he remembered where he was. He opened his eyes slowly to see paint dripping in front of Jongup. No, that was just paint dripping off of his hair and onto his face. Jongup stared at him, eyes wide and eyebrows raised in complete shock. Daehyun chuckled awkwardly, grabbing the paint can that had spilled red all over his clothing. He looked at Jongup for a moment and then set it down.

A moment later Jongup’s arms were wrapped around his waist as he caught Daehyun mid-run. Daehyun gave up lifelessly. Jongup spun him around and held his shoulders. A cold look filled his eyes.

“Okay, you’re going to stand still and explain what’s going on. If you take off like that again, you could ruin my painting. You already got paint all over the floor--” Jongup pointed across the room-- “and all over me.”

Daehyun looked guiltily at Jongup. Before he could say anything, Jongup cut him off.

“This shirt cost a dollar, and these pants didn’t cost much more. I paint in these because I don’t care if they get ruined. Don’t worry about it.” He saw Daehyun’s ashamed glances and sighed softly. “Sit down and explain,” he said as he, too, sat down.

Daehyun crossed his legs in front of him, then looked Jongup in the eyes. The ice had melted from them. Confusion and a light shade of caring filled them instead. Daehyun opened his mouth to speak, then gave up with a groan. He popped out his fangs, then stood up. He transformed into a bat, and then back into a human, sitting down dizzily. Jongup held his hand and helped him sit down without knocking anything over.

Jongup looked at him in silence, startling Daehyun when he moved his hair out of his eyes. He pointed at Daehyun’s shirt.

“So that’s not because you’re a fan of some show.”

“No, it’s not,” Daehyun said, his fangs making him lisp gently. He wouldn’t meet Jongup’s eyes anymore. He closed his mouth and they poked out, curling around his bottom lip.

“You look like a chipmunk.” Jongup reached up and poked Daehyun’s cheek. “No offense, but you’re not very scary for a vampire.”

“You’re awfully relaxed about this whole thing.”

“I don’t think you’re here to suck my blood, so I’m not worried. Why are you here?”

Daehyun held his face in his hands as he spoke, his words coming out as a garbled run-on sentence in his embarrassment. “I got off at the wrong bus stop and ended up around here and I heard someone singing and I thought it was you and you were painting and I wanted to watch and listen to you sing because you have a really pretty voice and--”

“Shh,” Jongup said. “It’s okay. Breathe.”

Daehyun dropped his hands from his face and fear filled his eyes. “You’re not going to turn me in, are you?”

“For breaking and entering, or for being a vampire?”

“Both?” Daehyun tried hopefully. His fangs glinted in his mouth as he smiled. It was kind of cute, in a weird, spooky way.

“I mean, I’m fine, but that paint can might want to sue you.” Jongup pointed at it. It was tipped on its side. Claw marks covered the inside and there was a dent near the top. Daehyun giggled. Jongup cleared his throat to gain his attention again.

“I’m sorry,” Daehyun said. “I shouldn’t have done any of what I did.”

“You’re right.” Jongup leaned towards Daehyun, his mouth pulled into a smirk, and then reached around beside him. “You should’ve checked your phone.” He grabbed it off of the floor. It had fallen out of Daehyun’s pocket when he had turned into a bat.

Daehyun looked at his phone, and then at his paint-covered hands.

“Wipe them on my pants,” Jongup offered. “Just don’t be weird about it.”

“Thank you,” Daehyun said, his cheeks flushing red. He wiped his hands off in quick motions around Jongup’s knees, then grabbed his phone. He had a text. “Oh.”

_Hey, it’s Jongup. If you want to come over and watch me paint, you can. You always watch me draw, so you’ll probably like watching me paint, too. Or we can just talk. Text me back._

“Oh,” Daehyun repeated.

“While this was not the entrance I expected, Batman, I can’t say I’m mad at you for coming. I did offer, even if you didn’t see it.”

Daehyun opened his mouth to respond but couldn’t find any words to say. Changing the topic, he said, “You have a pretty singing voice.”

“Thank you.” Jongup pointed at Daehyun’s head. “You have pretty hair. Both with and without the blood orange.”

Daehyun’s smile dropped immediately and his entire facial expression took a look of disappointment. “Did you just call it blood orange?” he deadpanned.

“Yeah.”

“Blood orange.”

“Yup.” Jongup stood up, walking over to the paint can.

“It’s red. Don’t be pretentious.”

“Oh, I know it’s red. Catch,” he called, tossing the bucket to Daehyun. “Read the label.”

Daehyun wiped red paint off of the outside of the can, looking for the name of the paint. There it was, as clear as day. Blood orange.

“What the hell,” Daehyun mumbled. “It’s red.”

“You seem to be getting fired up about this red thing.”

“I have a tendency to take red seriously. If I don’t drink red, I’ll die. And this? This paint in my hair? This is red.”

“Don’t drink the paint, Daehyun,” Jongup said as he sat back down.

“Gosh, no, I wouldn’t drink paint,” Daehyun said with disgust. “Only food and drinks.”

“And blood?” Jongup was looking at Daehyun with interest and intrigue.

Daehyun snarled, retracting his fangs. He noticed the way Jongup tensed and sent him an apologetic look. “Me? No. Other vampires do, but I don’t.”

“So you just… Drink red?”

“Yup. I need to eat, too, so a lot of my food is red.”

“And you can just pop your fangs in and out like that?” Jongup leaned forward, their faces only a few inches apart. “Smile for me.”

Daehyun grinned, keeping his mouth closed. He looked frustrated, like he wanted to say something but didn’t want to open his mouth to do it. After a moment of hesitation, his expression softened, but it was too late.

Jongup ran his fingers over Daehyun’s tummy with a mischievous smile. Daehyun bursted into laughter a moment later, his mouth opening wide in a smile. He tried to cover his sensitive tummy, but Jongup quickly moved up to tickle his neck.

“Quit it,” Daehyun breathed out between laughs. “Stop.” Daehyun’s fangs popped out the next time he laughed.

“Okay, okay.” Jongup stopped, moving one hand to cup Daehyun’s cheek, letting the other fall on Daehyun’s shoulder.

Daehyun shut his mouth immediately, batting Jongup’s hand away from his face. He popped his fangs back in with a snarl and then pointed at his cheek.

“Don’t touch my face when they’re out. I’m scared of accidentally turning someone.”

Jongup said nothing, nodding and replacing his hand on its spot on Daehyun’s cheek. “Your cheeks are squishy even when they’re not out. How cute.”

Daehyun batted his hand away again. “You don’t have squishy cheeks. All you have are high cheekbones.”

“Is that a bad thing?” Jongup asked, quirking a skeptical eyebrow upwards and letting his hand fall away.

“No.” Daehyun looked up with a smile. “You’re really handsome.”

Jongup smiled, ducking his head and scratching the back of his neck. “Thank you.”

Daehyun sat in silence for a while, opening and closing his mouth. He finally steeled his resolve and found his voice when Jongup looked up at him.

“Are you going to turn me in?” Daehyun asked again. His voice was quiet, but his tone was much, much more serious. He looked determined, but a look into his eyes told Jongup it was a front. He was scared.

Jongup reached out to hold Daehyun’s hand, ignoring the dryness from the dried paint. “No.” He squeezed Daehyun’s hand reassuringly. “Not for anything.”

Daehyun let out such a huge breath that he slumped forward, his head almost on Jongup’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

Jongup couldn’t find any words in the air to respond, so he stood up, still holding Daehyun’s hand. Noticing Daehyun’s confused look, he gave him a smile, then brushed his paint-covered hair out of his eyes.

“Come on. There’s a shower over here.”

“I don’t have any clean clothes to put on,” Daehyun said. “Plus, I left my bag outside.”

“Do you want to go get some? It’s pretty late.”

“My apartment isn’t far away. I could just go home.”

Jongup’s expression fell for a moment before he hid it with indifference. “Do you want to go home?”

Daehyun looked sheepish. “I don’t really want to leave you. I like talking to you. We’re getting to be friends, right?” Jongup’s nod was extremely reassuring, giving him a small bolt of confidence. “We could go back to my place and get all cleaned up. Sleepover?” he tried quietly.

Jongup smiled. “Sure.”

“Great! I’ll go get my bag. Meet me outside.”

Jongup was about to object, but Daehyun tugged away from him and transformed into a bat. He fluttered out the window. Jongup shook his head with a smile. He grabbed a small, empty backpack from a storage closet-turned-bedroom, putting some clothes and pajamas inside, as well as his toothbrush, then headed upstairs. He said a quick goodbye to the others and went out the front door. Daehyun was waiting for him with a sweet smile.

“You could have just gone out the front door with me,” Jongup said, rolling his eyes.

Daehyun’s smile dropped, replaced with a look of embarrassment. “Oh. Right. I forgot.”

Jongup smiled. “Do you have your phone?”

“Yeah,” Daehyun said cheerily. He tapped his front pocket. “It didn’t fall out this time.”

“How does it only fall out sometimes?” Jongup closed the door behind him and slung his backpack over his shoulders.

“Bat powers?” Daehyun tried.

“Whatever you say, Batman.”

Daehyun smiled. “Come on.” He reached for Jongup’s hand and started walking.

“Would it be rude to ask how long you’ve been a vampire?” Jongup asked. “I don’t know much about etiquette when it comes to these things.”

“Maybe, but I don’t mind,” Daehyun said. He seemed to tense up, though. “I was turned when I was five.”

Jongup squeezed his hand reassuringly. “So you haven’t had a friend for all this time?”

Daehyun shook his head. “Only ones online, since I can never get close enough to them to bite them, and they’d have a harder time turning me in.”

“Do you think you’re going to bite someone?” Jongup asked, confused.

“I hope not,” Daehyun said. “I worry anyways, though. I don’t want to turn someone without their consent. I’m not even sure I’d turn someone with their consent.”

“I don’t think you have to worry.” Jongup squeezed Daehyun’s hand again. “You haven’t bitten anyone in… How many years?”

“Seventeen.” Daehyun smiled gently. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” They walked in silence for the rest of the way.

When they arrived at Daehyun’s apartment, the two of them had a brief argument about who would shower first. In the end, Jongup ended up going, since he was less dirty and promised to be quick. He lounged around on Daehyun’s couch while Daehyun cleaned up. Jongup was singing again when he returned, so he stood in the bathroom doorway, a towel thrown over his bare shoulders, and listened, eyes closing in relaxation. He opened his eyes when Jongup stopped and noticed him looking right at him. Daehyun quickly ducked away into his bedroom, a blush covering his cheeks, and threw on a t-shirt.

“Go on,” Daehyun said when he rejoined Jongup. Jongup sat up on the couch to make room for Daehyun, raising an eyebrow at him. “Keep singing, I mean.”

Jongup smiled. He ruffled Daehyun’s damp hair, then began singing again. He decided to keep playing with Daehyun’s hair, damp as it may be. At least it didn’t have paint in it any more.

He stopped mid-line. “Have you had enough red today?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Daehyun said, his voice quiet. “I won’t bite you. I promise.”

“I’m not worried about you biting me, I’m worried about you getting weak. That’s what happens when you don’t drink enough, right?”

“Yeah. How’d you know?” He scooted closer to Jongup slowly, comforted by his presence.

“I looked some stuff up while you were in the shower. Most of it was about all of those vampire TV shows, but I found a few forums that seemed legitimate. I mean, it made sense to me because I know you’re a vampire, but a human that didn’t know would think it was just more fandom stuff.”

Daehyun smiled softly. “That means a lot to me.”

“Good.” Jongup put an arm around Daehyun’s waist. “I’m your friend now, and friends take care of each other.”

Daehyun’s smile grew. “Thank you.”

“No problem.” Jongup began singing again as Daehyun scooted even closer, leaning his head on Jongup’s shoulder. He was singing a song that Daehyun knew, though, and seemingly one that he loved, because Daehyun started singing with him, too. Jongup looked at the way Daehyun’s eyes fluttered closed when he enjoyed the song. Daehyun opened his eyes a moment later to speak.

“Oh, just so you know, you get the bed. I’m staying on the couch,” Daehyun said.

“I’ve been on this couch for a while,” Jongup replied, pulling his arm away from Daehyun. “I don’t know if I can give it up.”

“Well, you’re going to have to.”

“And if I don’t?”

“I’ll carry you off of this couch.”

“I don’t think you can do that,” Jongup said, standing up. “I bet I can, though.” He picked Daehyun up in one quick movement, one arm hooked around Daehyun’s back, the other supporting his knees. Daehyun let him without resisting until Jongup carried him into his bedroom. Just as he was about to set him down, Daehyun turned into a bat. Jongup whirled around to look at him, but Daehyun was already out the door and back on the couch. He stretched out to take up the entire thing, his hands behind his head and his legs lazily crossed. He sent Jongup a mocking smirk as he came back.

“It’s still too early to go to bed,” Jongup said, lifting Daehyun’s feet and dropping them onto the floor. He sat back down. “You can’t get rid of me yet, sorry.”

“Dang,” Daehyun said, faking disappointment. He snapped his fingers. “I was trying so hard, too.”

“Guess who’ll have to try harder, then.”

Daehyun lifted his feet up and put them on Jongup’s lap in response, sprawling out again. Jongup lifted an eyebrow at him.

“You’re so immature.”

“I mean, if I’m going to live for all of eternity, I’ll always be a baby.” He popped out his fangs, then poked his cheeks, trying to look cute.

“At least you’re a cute baby.” Jongup rolled his eyes. “So, what should we do? Watch a movie? Just talk?”

“Talking is fine,” Daehyun said, sitting up. “Do you have any more vampire questions?”

“A few. So you really live forever?”

“Apparently. I don’t actually know. I haven’t been alive for that long.”

“Does turning into a bat hurt or anything?”

“I get dizzy if I change forms too quickly.”

“Are you dizzy now?”

“Nope.” Daehyun retracted his fangs again.

Jongup was used to the growling noise he made, but it made him curious. “Do you have to snarl when you pull your fangs back in?”

“Does it bother you?”

“No.”

“It’s a habit. When I was younger, the first time my fangs came out, I didn’t know they could go back in. I was making faces at myself in the mirror and when I snarled, they pulled in. The noise is part of the package now. I can stop.”

“It’s fine, honestly. Pretty dorky, though.”

“It’s fun to pretend I’m a stereotypical vampire sometimes.”

“And what are stereotypical vampires like?”

“You don’t know?”

“Nope,” Jongup said. “You’re the first vampire I’ve met, fictional or otherwise.”

“Hmm.” Daehyun tapped his chin with his forefinger. “Stereotypically really sexy…”

“You’ve already broken the stereotype.”

“I could be sexy if I wanted to.”

Jongup looked at Daehyun, thinking back to earlier, when he was standing shirtless in the doorway listening to him sing. He shrugged. “I don’t doubt that.”

Daehyun lit up, a huge smile crossing his face. He bit it down a moment later. “You should paint me, then.”

“Maybe I will. In blood orange.”

“Never mind. You’re the worst.”

“Blood red any better?”  


“I’ll punch you.”  


“You’re all bark and no bite.” Daehyun flashed his fangs at him for that. “More stereotypes?”

“They really like necks.”

“Do they? Do you like mine?”

“They like biting them,” Daehyun explained. “I don’t like biting anything except for food. Even then, it’s kind of inconvenient. Sometimes my fangs get stuck in it.”

“Huh,” Jongup said. “Keep going.”

Daehyun thought for a moment, then said, “They sparkle.”

“So do you, Mr. Sunshine Smiles. I’m pretty sure the stars in the sky are all in your eyes, too.”

“I meant their skin,” Daehyun said, smiling nonetheless.

“Well, your skin glows,” Jongup said nonchalantly.

“Are you just going to keep complimenting me?” Daehyun asked, faking frustration. Jongup could tell he was happy.

“I’m just telling you the truth.” Jongup turned his body a little bit to face Daehyun. “Another question.”

“Yeah?” Daehyun looked up at Jongup.

Jongup hesitated for a moment, then spoke. “Do your fangs pop when you kiss someone?” His voice was hushed.

The question caught Daehyun completely off guard. His face wiped blank. “I don’t know,” he whispered.

“Can I find out?”

“They never did in the past,” Daehyun continued, ignoring Jongup’s question. “But, then again, I was kissing another vampire. It wouldn’t really make sense for them to pop, though, would it? I mean, being a vampire can’t be that cruel.”

“Daehyun,” Jongup said, interrupting him. “Can I find out?”

Daehyun thought for a moment, then leaned closer and pressed a kiss to Jongup’s cheek. He left it there for a few moments, then pulled away again. Jongup smiled and pecked Daehyun’s cheek in return. Daehyun did the same. They kept repeating the pattern until they ended up smiling and laughing too hard. Daehyun sighed happily, leaning his head on Jongup’s shoulder for a moment before sitting up again.

“Yes,” Daehyun said.

“What?” Jongup asked, having completely forgotten the conversation. A moment later, he realized what Daehyun meant, but it was too late.

Daehyun leaned in, putting one hand on Jongup’s cheek gently. He closed his eyes gently and pressed his lips softly against Jongup’s. Jongup closed his eyes after a moment, putting his hands on Daehyun’s waist. Daehyun’s lips were extremely soft. He wasn’t sure if it was a vampire thing or a Daehyun thing, but he liked it either way. He moved one of his hands to play with the fingers of Daehyun’s idle hand, eventually lacing them together, palm to palm in the air. He was a bit startled by how cold his hands were, but that only made him squeeze Daehyun’s hand.

Daehyun pulled away a moment later, his eyes fluttering open and filled with curiosity and warmth. He looked at their intertwined fingers and Jongup’s other hand on his waist, but didn’t pull away. He dropped his hand away from Jongup’s cheek.

“I guess they don’t pop out when I kiss people, then,” he said quietly. He leaned in to nuzzle his nose into Jongup’s neck.

“I guess you do like necks, then,” Jongup teased.

“Maybe I only like yours.”

“I’m lucky, then.” He let go of Daehyun’s hand to tug him closer by the waist. “You still want the couch?”

“Honestly, I’m really cuddly… So not really, but if you’re not comfy with sharing the bed, that’s completely okay.”

“Come on.” Jongup let go of Daehyun, then lifted him up again. Daehyun slowly looped his arms around Jongup’s neck this time. “If we’re being honest, I’ve had a crush on you for a long time. You didn’t know I was in some of your classes, did you?”

“Wait, really?” Daehyun looked embarrassed. “No, I didn’t. I try to minimize the amount of people I’ll try to befriend by ignoring them.”

“That’s nice.” Jongup rolled his eyes. “Don’t ignore me any more, okay?” He set Daehyun down on the bed gently, then walked over to turn the lights off.

“I won’t.”

“Another vampire question,” Jongup said as he got under the covers. “Are you more awake at night?”

“Originally, I was, but life doesn’t allow that schedule for me at the moment.”

“Good.” Jongup pressed a kiss to Daehyun’s forehead. “Get some sleep.”

The two of them snuggled together in silence. Daehyun rested his head on Jongup’s shoulders, content to finally be close to someone. He heard Jongup’s steady heartbeat, and, contrary to what he’d expected, it calmed him down instead of making him thirsty for red. He pressed a quick peck to Jongup’s chin, then stopped moving, going into a deep, vampire-coma sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter even though this was originally a one-shot because someone commented that they'd like one (yeah I see you), and now I'm so into this AU that I'm scared I may never stop it

Daehyun woke up with a loud hiss, glaring at the window. Of course he was more sensitive to the sun than the average person, but it was way, way worse right after waking up. He squeezed his eyes shut and clapped a hand to his forehead, groaning at the headache that was already coming. He felt Jongup shift and then leave, followed by a blanket quickly hitting his face. He whined for a moment, and then the blanket pulled away from his face. The room was dark again, but he could see Jongup crawling back into bed with him. **  
**

“It’s like, six in the morning,” Jongup said. “Do you have class today?”

“Not until the evening,” Daehyun whispered.

“Good.” Jongup pulled Daehyun over to his side again. “Get some more sleep.”

“No good morning kiss?” Daehyun asked. He could almost hear Jongup quirking an eyebrow at him. Daehyun started to panic, wondering if Jongup knew what was going on. Maybe he didn’t remember any of last night, and soon he’d be throwing Daehyun out, wondering why there was someone in his bed-

“Are you going to kiss me now or are you going to keep spacing out?” Jongup asked. Daehyun blinked and saw, quite clearly with his improved night eyesight, Jongup hovering above him. Daehyun thought for a moment, then reached up to cup Jongup’s cheek. Jongup pressed their lips together in a warm kiss, then flopped back down, pulling Daehyun against him.

“Do you remember everything?” Daehyun asked, nervous.

“What do you mean?”

“Last night…”

“You sound so worried.” He took notice of Daehyun’s lack of breathing and sighed. “I remember seeing you shirtless,” he said, touching Daehyun’s shoulder gently, “and I remember kissing you, and yes, I remember that you’re a vampire.”

Daehyun let out a loud, heavy breath. He couldn’t find the right words, so he leaned up and pressed a long, warm kiss to Jongup’s cheek, hoping it’d say enough. It did, and Jongup rubbed Daehyun’s back gently before the two of them drifted off again for a bit.

Daehyun woke up about an hour later, but Jongup was still asleep. He brushed Jongup’s hair out of his eyes to press a kiss to his forehead. He figured he was probably not going to fall bad asleep, so he crawled away from Jongup to the other side of the bed and put his hands under his head as he looked up at the ceiling. His phone lit up dimly beside him. He reached for it, squinting at the screen. He had a text.

_How’s my vampire son doing?_

_Daehyun smiled. Still not drinking any blood, Dad._

_I’m proud of you. Do you have a boyfriend now?_

_Maybe…_ Then Daehyun set his phone down and looped Jongup’s arms back around him, pressing another kiss to his forehead. He saw his phone light up out of the corner of his eye and ignored it in favor of thinking again.

He liked Jongup, at least, in a crush way. Jongup was really handsome, but sometimes endearingly cute, and he could sing well. He seemed kind and gentle. Daehyun looked at Jongup again. He didn’t exactly know him too well. He hoped they’d get closer. Jongup did seem to like being physically close to him, at least, but maybe something happened when Daehyun kissed him. Maybe it was something in his fangs. He’d never turned someone before; he didn’t know the effects before the turn. Maybe he’d accidentally bitten Jongup.

Or, maybe, Jongup was interested in him as a person.

Daehyun smiled at the thought and decided to believe it.

He heard a soft grumble and looked to see Jongup stirring, blinking his eyes heavily with sleep. He inhaled deeply and then rolled over, putting his back to Daehyun. “You awake?” Jongup mumbled.

“Yeah.” Daehyun scooted close to Jongup, putting his arm over his hip and pressing his chest against his back.

“Sleep issues?”

“It happens as a vampire.” Daehyun moved his arms to rub Jongup’s shoulders gently. “Most things get a little bit ruined.”

Jongup hummed in response, then rolled over again. He nuzzled his nose against Daehyun’s neck and wrapped his arms around his waist. “You didn’t, though.”

“What?”

“You didn’t get ruined.”

Daehyun smiled. He smiled so widely that his fangs popped out.

\-----------------

Weeks passed and Daehyun and Jongup started dating officially. They’d switch between staying at each other’s places every so often. Daehyun would cook regularly, and Jongup would make sure Daehyun had enough red every day.

In early December, it started snowing. Jongup learned that Daehyun loved the snow, and that it wasn’t good for his health. Bats were supposed to hibernate during the cold months, so Daehyun was more likely to get sick and sleepy than usual. Jongup refused to let him turn into a bat as much as he could, since he would be so small that the cold could easily overtake his body.

So, Daehyun, much to his dismay, instead of going outside and playing in the snow, would sit in front of the window, coffee or tea in hand, and look at the frost on the window. He’d read or do homework there, too. If he couldn’t be outside, he at least liked to be near it.

This was one of those days where Daehyun was staring longingly out the window. He had coffee from a nearby Starbucks in his hand, and he had his legs up on the chair with him, one arm wrapped around his knees. He was wearing only a sweater and basketball shorts, but he didn’t seem to be cold. A nagging sensation told him he should have been doing something productive, but he was perfectly content with just being for a while.

“Finished,” Jongup said, holding his sketchbook out. Daehyun looked at it with a smile. It was a drawing of him with snow in his hair. A tan sweater framed his body, and his nose and cheeks were shaded with a rosy pink. He noticed Jongup gave him little freckles of snow and his smile grew. Most of all, he was smiling in the drawing, too, just enough for his little fangs to show. It made Daehyun’s heart warm. Jongup was so accepting of him as a vampire.

“I love it,” Daehyun said. “Having an artsy boyfriend is such a blessing. I’m so lucky.” He set down his coffee on the coffee table and put his legs down, then leaned up to cup Jongup’s cheeks. Their lips met in a warm kiss that completely brushed away the winter cold. All of Daehyun’s desires of being out in the snow were forgotten as soon as their lips met.

When they pulled away, Daehyun smiled and stood up, wrapping his arms around Jongup’s shoulders to kiss him again. He pulled away after his tongue brushed against Jongup’s lips.

“I hate peppermint,” Daehyun said. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and looked for their candy cane storage.

“Oh, come on, you can’t hate peppermint,” Jongup said. “It’s winter. Every store is selling candy canes. You can’t expect me not to get them.”

“They make sweet ones. Fruity flavors. Sour kinds. Come on, Jongup, there are so many options, and you opt for _peppermint?_ ”

“I’m scared of getting sour kinds because you’re so sour already,” Jongup teased. Daehyun stuck his tongue out at him.

It was winter break at the college. Many students went home to celebrate with their families, but Jongup’s lived across the country and Daehyun hadn’t broken the news to him yet. He figured he would later, but, for now, he decided not to.

Neither of them celebrated Christmas, Hanukkah, Mawlid, or any other winter holidays. To them, though, it was a time that they could be together. They’d buy each other gifts, not in the spirit of holiday, just in the spirit of caring about each other. Daehyun had decided to buy him little gifts for every day of the break. So far, he’d gotten Jongup new art supplies (ones that he’d desperately needed), some new clothes, and some cologne that they both loved. Jongup was wearing it now, and it made Daehyun want to ignore the peppermint and kiss him again anyways.

“So what are we going to do today?” Jongup sat down in the chair Daehyun had been in earlier and stretched his arms out. Daehyun plopped on the floor and rested his head against Jongup’s knee.

“I don’t know,” he hummed, closing his eyes as Jongup played with his hair. “We could go shopping. That sounds fun.”

“Get matching sweaters.”

“Bundle you up in cute scarves.”

“You’re the one that needs them, Batman.”

“But they look so cute on you.” Daehyun stood up to sit on Jongup’s lap, leaning backwards, his head resting on Jongup’s shoulder. He closed his eyes again and made a quiet grumbling noise.

“Drink your coffee,” Jongup said, grabbing the cup and putting it in Daehyun’s hands. He kept his hands on Daehyun’s, helping guide it to his lips. “You’re so sleepy when you don’t get your morning coffee.”

“Thank you,” Daehyun mumbled, taking a small sip. Jongup glared at him and he drank more, downing the whole thing fairly soon. As soon as he finished, he set the cup down, then turned to wrap his arms around Jongup’s neck, rubbing his nose against his collarbone. “Nap time.”

“Nap time.” Jongup lifted Daehyun up, one arm under his knees, the other around his back, and set him on the couch gently. “Bat time.”

Daehyun needed less sleep as a bat, so he’d turn into one for his naps. It turned what could be a two-hour slumber into a mere twenty minute event. He transformed and crawled under the blanket on the couch. Jongup could see the pink fabric rise and fall with Daehyun’s breathing and smiled. He went and showered, and, when he got back, pulled the cover off of Daehyun, gently awakening him. Daehyun turned back into a human at the touch, as human touch always made him transform when he was asleep, regardless of what form he was in, but stayed curled up for a moment. He drew in a deep breath through his nose, then blinked his eyes open slowly. Jongup was carrying in a little cup of tea. Daehyun drank it quickly, then ran off to shower.

It was late in the morning when they were ready to go. Daehyun pulled his black trench coat over his shoulders on top of the coat, sweater, and turtleneck he was wearing underneath. He got cold easily. Bat bones.

The two of them walked out of the door, Daehyun’s head covered in a little beanie and face covered up to the nose by his turtleneck. They walked quickly out of Daehyun’s apartment to Jongup’s car. By the time they got in, Daehyun was already shivering. Jongup turned on the heat, pressed a kiss to Daehyun’s cheek, and took his hands, rubbing them to warm them.

“The mall?” Jongup asked. It was nice because there were multiple clothing stores inside, so they didn’t have to get cold between visits.

“Yeah,” Daehyun said. He fished his wallet from his pocket, checking for his credit card. When he found it, he smiled and put it back into his trench coat. He grabbed the pillow from the backseat and set it against the window, pressing his cheek to it, and tried to get rid of some of the last bits of sleepiness he had before they got there.

It seemed to be only moments later when Daehyun put the pillow back and climbed out of the car, scuttling towards the mall entrance. Jongup was just in front of him, jogging to pull the door open for him. He was smiling brightly at Daehyun when he followed. He enjoyed the little energy release. Daehyun pulled off his mittens and his beanie, putting them in one of his coat pockets, but kept his turtleneck on. He took one of Jongup’s hands, then pulled it into his pocket with his own hand. Jongup squeezed his hand and the two of them set off walking around.

They looked at ugly sweaters with snowflakes and candy canes, scarves and beanies in every color, and all of the candy they could possibly imagine (except for on Halloween; there was always more candy on Halloween), but stayed looking for about an hour. It wasn’t until Daehyun had peeled off his trench coat, retiring it to his arm, that they found something he wanted to get Jongup.

It was a nice, expensive suit on a mannequin. The dress shirt was white, and the suit jacket and dress pants were a dark, ebony pinstripe. There were engraved metal buttons on the shoulders and a few buttons down the front, as well as four front pockets. Two were breast pockets, and the other two were at the hip. He felt the sleeve gently.

“You’re not going to get me something that expensive,” Jongup said. “That’s too much.”

“But it’d look so good on you.” He looked at Jongup, then bit his lip. “You’d look so good in it.”

Jongup quirked an eyebrow upwards at him, thoroughly unconvinced. “You’re going to have to try harder than that, Daehyun.”

“I’m getting it.” Daehyun ducked off into the rows of clothing to find the same style. Jongup rolled his eyes, following him in. He could tell Daehyun had made up his mind. He could try to snag the receipt and return it, but Daehyun seemed really set on this. It wasn’t his usual gifting tendencies. There was more to it. This was important to him.

“I’m going to get you one, too,” Jongup said. He disappeared to look at other styles, but ended up getting a similar kind. They were both pinstripe suits, and both the same color, but the one Jongup picked had only one breast pocket without a button, and less buttons in the front, adding in a bolo tie with a silver and gemstone centerpiece that he hid from Daehyun. They had them carefully folded in plastic sheets and placed in the same bag, though they paid separately.

They left the tailor and Daehyun paused to look around. He smiled and walked toward the jewelry store. Jongup followed him, carrying the bag.

“Nothing too expensive,” he said.

“Don’t worry. I already know what I’m getting you.” Sure enough, he asked the clerk for an item on display, not letting Jongup see it, and had it boxed up quickly. He and the clerk exchanged a few words, and Daehyun smiled and looked at Jongup. The clerk looked, too, and nodded. Jongup smiled and waved, then watched as they went back to their purchase.

Daehyun popped back up a moment later, waking Jongup up from his spacing out. “Got it.”

“Were you talking about me?” Jongup asked.

“He asked if I was getting it for someone special, and I said it was for that handsome man with the blue hair.”

“You’re sweet.” Jongup pecked his lips.

“I try.” Daehyun made a noise at the taste of the peppermint. “Let’s go get good candy canes.”

Jongup rolled his eyes, but they laced their fingers together and bought some cherry-flavored candy canes, much to Daehyun’s delight. They then went back to looking at sweaters. Jongup got Daehyun a cute, pink, large V-neck knit sweater, and Daehyun got him a gray knit pullover in return. They went on to buy more beanies and mittens, as well as little gifts for one another throughout the day. In the mid-afternoon, they decided to finish up and went back to Daehyun’s apartment.

When they arrived, Daehyun crawled under the blanket on the couch, still wearing his four layers, and didn’t get out until he’d stopped shivering. As he was about to pull off his trench coat, he felt Jongup’s hand slowly help guide it off. Jongup helped him take off his coat, too, and hung both of them up.

“Today was fun,” Jongup said. He tilted his chin up towards Daehyun’s, connecting their lips in a kiss. Daehyun pulled him closer by the waist, then ran his fingers through Jongup’s soft, blue hair. Jongup pulled away a moment later. “I can’t wait to kiss you when your lips taste like cherry.”

“I don’t want to wait until then,” Daehyun whispered. Their lips brushed together for a moment before he sat down, pulling Jongup onto his lap. “Kiss me now.”

“Isn’t the peppermint going to bother you?” Jongup quirked an eyebrow upwards, but a smirk followed it.

“I like you more than I hate peppermint.” Daehyun cupped Jongup’s cheeks and pulled their lips together, then returned his arms to their place around his torso. Jongup didn’t object as Daehyun pulled him closer and leaned in closer himself, his arms thrown around Daehyun’s neck. Daehyun pulled away, though their lips never really stopped touching.

“Besides, the taste is gone now.” He let out a quiet breath, their foreheads touching, then kissed him again. A song startled them apart, and Daehyun grabbed his phone hastily. Jongup quickly moved off of his lap and sat beside him.

“Hello,” Daehyun said. Jongup read his expression as slightly nervous. “Yeah, uh, about that…” He stood up, pressing his phone against his shoulder. “It’s my dad.” He walked away, but Jongup could hear him say that he hadn’t asked about something as he left the room. Jongup thought back to the expression Daehyun had had when he’d been buying Jongup’s suit. It was the same look of worry.

“Sorry about that,” Daehyun said, coming back into the room. He sat back down on the couch, reaching for Jongup’s hand. He was still nervous, but he was trying to play it off as he leaned in to kiss Jongup again. Jongup pulled back though.

“What is it?” he asked quietly. He cupped Daehyun’s face gently.

Daehyun immediately disconnected their gaze, dropping his eyes to his lap. He opened and closed his mouth a few times to speak, then finally forced the words out. “My family wants to meet you. They have this big party for the new year, and they wanted me to bring you.”

“Is that bad?” Jongup was worried. He brushed Daehyun’s hair out of his eyes.

“I thought you’d think it was too soon.” He looked up hopefully, smiling when Jongup touched his shoulders.

“I’d love to.”

Daehyun’s smile grew. “I was hoping you’d say that. That’s part of why I bought you the suit. It’s a formal dinner.”

“Are you all vampires?”

“Not all of us.” Daehyun looked away. “We never wanted to be turned, you know. They came out of nowhere.” He took Jongup’s hand for reassurance. “They were so thirsty that they didn’t know what they were doing. They didn’t know that they could just drink the color red. They found us right before dinner. If it was any sooner or later, we might have died. My parents were just carrying out the food to the dinner table when they heard us screaming. It was for a party, too, so it was our whole family. Cousins and aunts and uncles…

Our house was a big one, and it was out in the country. We were all playing outside. I was only five at the time, remember?” He saw Jongup nod and smiled, then continued solemnly. “The older kids were climbing trees. They were the first ones to get bitten.” He blinked back a tear. “We all started screaming, and my parents ran out, food still in hand. The vampires had already bitten about half of us by that time. They stopped immediately and dashed over to the food, stuffing their faces with it. They regained their senses a few moments later, but they couldn’t undo it. It was too late.”

Jongup pushed up Daehyun’s right sleeve, looking at the tattoo on his wrist. Running his fingers over it, he felt two tiny raised bumps of scar tissue. He looked up at Daehyun for confirmation. He nodded in response. Jongup pressed his lips against the bite, closing his eyes for a moment.

“I wish it had never happened,” Daehyun continued, “but I can’t turn back time. I’m stuck like this.”

“That’s okay,” Jongup said. He brushed a tear from Daehyun’s cheek. “Bad things happen, and I know it must be terrible, but you’re not alone.” Jongup took Daehyun’s hand, pressing their palms together tightly. “Not anymore.”

He pressed their lips together, then pulled Daehyun into his arms. He carried Daehyun to his room and gave him the sweater and basketball shorts that he usually wore to sleep. He turned his back while Daehyun changed, and then crawled in bed with him and held him until he was out of tears. Then, he wrapped him in a blanket, letting him take a little bat-nap. He was always tired after he cried.

Daehyun woke up half an hour later to the smell of pizza. He stumbled out of his bedroom, rubbing his eyes. Jongup smiled at him a bit awkwardly as he hung up his coat.

“I don’t cook, so I got pizza.”

“What kind?”

“Pepperoni, since we didn’t have lunch today. And I warmed up some of the spicy stew leftovers.”

“Thank you,” Daehyun mumbled. He almost fell, but Daehyun caught him, carefully walking with him to the coffee table.

“You need to have a lot of red.” Jongup left and returned with a red beverage. “Electrolytes and red, since you’re probably dehydrated, too.”

Daehyun mumbled something, but Jongup couldn’t make it out. He quickly held Daehyun up so he wouldn’t faint and hit his head, then opened the drink and tipped it to Daehyun’s lips. He spent ten minutes making sure Daehyun would be okay before he started eating. Even afterwards, Daehyun was still a bit weak. Jongup glanced at the time. It was only 7:53 in the evening, but the moon was already out. Jongup got Daehyun some more water, then carried him to bed again. Daehyun was already half-asleep when Jongup set him down. He stripped quickly, tossing on some pajamas, and then picked Daehyun up again. He helped him brush his teeth and wash his face, doing the same, and then they went to bed.

Daehyun cuddled up to Jongup, his arms against his chest. “I’m sorry for getting sick,” he mumbled.

“It’s not your fault.”

“Maybe you should go into nursing instead of art.” He nuzzled his nose against Jongup’s neck. “You’re already a piece of art anyways.”

Jongup had no words to respond to that with, but that was fine, because Daehyun was already asleep, anyways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter because I have a lot of homework to do tonight and I used all of my time writing this... But it was worth it because I enjoyed writing this. After tomorrow, I have a break from school, so I'll be writing more. Look forward to it c:


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